Below is our project description as it was while our campaign was still active:

You know how everyone and their Grandmother has a paper printer? Well, wouldn't it be cool if everyone and their Grandmother had a 3D printer? It definitely would, but this isn't a reality for 2 reasons:

- 3D Printers still quite expensive.

- They aren't very simple. Good luck teaching your Grandma how to use one!

The first goal of this project is simple, but bold…

We want to lower the cost and difficulty of 3D Printing to a point where it's accessible to the masses. We want the 3D Printer to become a household item. We want 3D printing to become a common part of life. We want you to have the choice: Should I buy it or should I make it?

With a Peachy Printer (scanner) on your desk, you can choose to make it. This is the world's most affordable 3D printer!

And our second goal...

We want to run our business on a set of specific moral principles, some of these are:

- Using Freedom Respecting software and hardware fully respecting freedoms 0 to 3. We will never close our source! We will never betray our community! We will always respect your freedoms!

- Being outspoken and informative about the political and ethical ramifications of 3D printing technology.

As you've seen from watching our main video, we've already got this little printer working pretty good. Every object in that video, and pictured below was done with the pre-production prototype featured in the "How it Works" video below!

This is one of our best prints to date!

Hollow Cube - Estimated resin cost - $0.02

Solid Cube - Estimated resin cost - $0.10

Dave! - Estimated resin cost - $0.50

We know we can make the Peachy do better which brings us to our reasons for using crowd-sourced funding:

- We need money to invest in improving the product, specifically the software end.

- We need to make high volume orders of our parts to keep costs low.

How does the Peachy Printer work?

Below is a detailed video explaining how the Peachy Printer works through explanation and demonstration!

The peachy printer is a Photolithographic printer. That means it uses a controlled beam of light to cure light sensitive resin into hard objects. The peachy moves a laser beam along the X and Y axes to create the shape of the object, while using a drip system to control the level of the resin on the Z axis which determines the height of the object.

The object you want to print must first become a 3D model in Blender. The software we wrote as an add on to blender takes the data from that 3D model and translates it into an audio waveform. It then plays the audio file out to the printer through the headphone jack in your computer. This waveform drives a pair of electro magnetic mirrors. The higher the volume, the higher the voltage, the more the mirrors move. The purpose of these mirrors is to reflect and control the path of the laser beam. By using the audio waveform generated from the 3D model data to drive the mirrors, we are able to get the laser beam to draw out the shape of the object. That's takes care of the X and Y axes.

Now let's talk about the drip system that creates movement on the Z axis. The salt water in the top container syphons down to a drip feed. The rate of this drip feed is controlled by a valve. As each drip leaves the feed, it passes through two contact points creating an electrical connection that is detected by your computers microphone jack. The drip continues to fall into the bottom container where it causes the resin floating atop it to rise. The software listens to the microphone level, counting each drip that falls and calculates the resultant level of the resin. This allows the software to send the layer that corresponds with the current Z-level of the resin. This process continues until the print is complete!

Under The Hood

Below are some detailed pictures showing under the hood of our current prototype. This is the exact hardware that made every print pictured and shown in the videos. Everything we do will be freedom respecting, and unlike some companies we will NEVER make any of our plans or source code non-free.

A few separate parts, as well as the fully built printer. During the R&D process we have been cutting our housings out of MDF to save on expenses.

Here you can see one of the mirrors that moves and directs the laser beam.

In this image you can clearly see the electro-magnet assembly that moves the mirrors.

If you've seen our main video then you already know just how well these new methods work. This extremely unique design has resulted in a very affordable product, however there are many challenges we must overcome to utilize the overwhelmingly high resolution of the Z-level drip system and todays sound cards. We are very confident in our ability to overcome these challenges and develop a great final product!

How does the 3D Scanner work?

When combined with a camera, the Peachy Printer also functions as a 3D scanner! The Peachy repeats a back and forth laser pattern that simulates a line laser. This illuminates the profile of the object you are scanning. Your video camera, webcam, or DSLR will capture this happening while you rotate the object a full 360 degrees. The software we wrote in Blender then searches through each pixel in every frame looking for the point where the laser is hitting the object. Next it calculates the distance of those pixels from the objects rotational centre and plots the points and mesh accordingly in 3D space. You now have a 3D model of the real life object you scanned.

We're even working on a feature that creates a texture map from the footage and applies it to the 3D models mesh automatically. This gives you a even more realistic looking 3D model.

More About Blender

Blender is 3D modelling and animation software. It is freedom respecting and available to download for free from Blender's website. Blender is central to the software side of this project. All the software that runs the printer will do so
from within Blender. Since Blender can import many file
types this actually leaves you free to use practically
any CAD program to create your models. The blender add ons we write will be capable of running many different printers, not just the Peachy. One unique feature our add on will have is real time processing. This will enable you to model
as the printer prints! You will be able to make changes
to any part of your model that hasn't been printed yet!

You may be wondering… What is our plan when it comes to fulfilling the orders if our campaign is successful? We have 2 different manufacturing plans:

Manufacturing Plan #1 - Under 5000 orders

We will start by taking two months to continue with R&D. We will be improving the software, hardware, and finalizing the overall design of the product.

After the R&D process is complete we will start manufacturing the printers on our own CNC routers. We are planning on milling the outer housing, mirror assembly, laser holster, and the coil holsters all out of polycarbonate first-surface mirror (vacuum coated with aluminum) which we have already completed successfully.

Manufacturing our mirror assemblies on the CNC router

We also have multiple suppliers in mind - most of which we have already used - for specific parts such as the custom wire coils, earth magnets, and the laser.

Pre-assembled models will be built here in Canada and each one will go through quality control at the end of our assembly line. We will likely have each printer draw out a grid in a dark room. A camera will capture the entire pattern in one image using a long exposure. If the printer is sufficiently capable of drawing an accurate grid, then that grid will be used in a calibration feedback loop for the individual printer that produced it. Not only is this a quality check, it also calibrates your printer to account for any tiny anomalies specific to it. You will receive the test photo and clear instructions on how to perform a re-calibration if you wish to do so.

Manufacturing Plan #2 - Over 5000 Orders

We will start by taking two months to continue with R&D. We will be improving the software, hardware, and finalizing the overall design of the product.

After the R&D process is complete we will get many of the parts that we are currently producing on CNC routers made with injection moulding instead. This manufacturing process ensures that each printer will be produced to more precise specifications and will be our go to choice if we get enough orders.

Meet the Team!

Rylan Grayston - Owner, Inventor, Software Developer

Rylan is a 28 year old entrepreneur living in Yorkton, SK. He has been very inventive and creative all of his life. From an early childhood he was always taking things apart, starting with his baby gate!

After high school Rylan decided to explore and gain real life experience. Over the years he worked in as many fields as he could including pottery, mechanics, advertising, 3D modelling and animation, programming, and many more.

Throughout all of the job titles, only one has really stuck - Inventor. Rylan is a deep thinker and loves keeping up to date with technology and the ethics surrounding our new found abilities. He is an active member of the Freedom Software Foundation and the Blender community.

David is a 38 year old certified Heavy Duty mechanic who is currently employed by Edmonton Kenworth in Fort McMurray, Alberta. He is also a certified Automotive mechanic and has been “twisting wrenches” on and off for around 20 years. In between those times, he has owned two small businesses, which taught him a lot, and aligned him with his entrepreneurial spirit. He has also worked in the insurance industry for a number of years. Having committed himself to lifelong learning and since one of his main interests is in manufacturing, he started training in the Six Sigma/Lean manufacturing process a couple of years ago after having read numerous books and articles on the subject. He has also read books and articles on the “Theory of Constraints” logic to manufacturing and found them both to be interesting.

Dave and Rylan met in mid 2012 and instantly hit it off. They were very interested in each other's ideas and it didn't take long before they were in business together. Over the past year they have been working together to get the Peachy Printer to where it's at today.

Nathan Grayston - Advertising & Marketing

Nathan is a 21 year old entrepreneur living in Yorkton, SK. He owns a business specializing in video production and graphic design. He started creating videos and designs at a young age and began doing it professionally 2 years ago.

Nathan is a very passionate and dedicated young man… No stranger to online fundraising campaigns, in 2012 he was a key member of the volunteer team that won the top prize in the Aviva Community Fund bringing in $150,000 for a new skateboard park in Yorkton. In total, the group raised $350,000 and saw the park come to completion in under a year.

Much like his role in that project, at Peachy Printer he's currently in charge of video production, graphic design, web design, marketing and advertising.

Josh Ellis - Owner and inventor of MakerJuice

Josh is a 28 year old engineer residing in Kansas City, MO. A lot like Rylan he has been taking things apart, and putting them back together from a young age. As he grew older he became interested in computers and programming. These passions led him to attend a mechanical and electrical engineering course at Louisiana State University. After his time at LSU, he served in the U.S. Airforce for 4 years. He now holds down a career doing R&D on A.I. Traffic Control Systems for an engineering firm.

Josh has been extremely interested in 3D printing as a hobby for years. After building his own CNC router from scratch and playing around with a RepRap, he started looking into stereolithographic printing. After doing some searching he was disheartened by the price of resins, and the lack of customer service from the providers. With a goal of providing the 3D printing community with a high quality, reasonably priced product, he started looking into making his own resin. After 6 months of testing out formulas and talking to suppliers he launched MakerJuice with 1 formula. Since then he has been continuously developing new resins and now has 4 products available.

Josh has been crucial to the development of the Peachy Printer. His highly sensitive resins have played a key part in attaining our goal of selling the Peachy for $100. We are currently in communication with Josh, and we will be working with him to develop a special resin formula just for the Peachy Printer.

Scott began building electronic circuits at the age of 8. He started programming computers at 10, and sold his first program a year later. Eventually he received a formal education as an Industrial Electronics Technologist with a focus on microcomputer systems and robotic controls. In the twenty years since, he has worked in Information Technology, Television Production, has designed and installed interactive museum displays, and has more recently been designing specialized data acquisition systems for geophysical surveys. In his spare time he plays bass guitar in an 80's band and is crew chief and mechanic for his daughter's junior dragster.

Scott will be bringing his circuit designing experience to the table and helping with the R&D of the Peachy Pro.

Gage Bush - 3D Modelling and Animation

Gage was raised on the barren wheat fields of Saskatchewan by an alternating family of Prairie Dogs and a Sasquatch. He was born into it, moulded by it, he did not even see flax until he was already a man. By then it was nothing but cereal to him. Gage has been honing his skills in 3D modelling, Animation, and Digital Art since January of 2006. In 2011 he won bronze at the national level in the Skills Canada competition, as well as another half dozen or so silver and gold medals at the provincial level. To this day he still spends 5-8 hours a day perfection this trade.

At Peachy Printer Gage uses his 3D modelling and animation skills to create videos and help with product design.

James Cooper - Senior Software Designer

James is a Senior Software Designer at Solido Design Automation in Saskatoon, Saskatchewan. There he works on a tool suite used to design integrated circuits. He holds degrees in Electrical Engineering and Computer Science from the University of Saskatchewan. James works primarily in Python and Qt, though he has experience in many languages, such as C, C++, and AVR assembly. He is an active member of the makerspace Saskatoon Techworks, where he has helped with projects ranging from combat robots to quadcopters. This is also where he met Rylan Grant and became involved in the Peachy Printer project.

James has been working alongside Rylan developing the software for this product from the beginning. One of his latest contributions is a G-code to audio converter. He will continue to be a valuable team member in the R&D process.

Kurtis Wanner - President and CEO of FingerTech Robotics LTD.

FingerTech Robotics Ltd is a leading design and manufacturing company of small competition and hobby robotics components. For over 10 years Kurtis has built up a strong global network of suppliers and resellers to distribute FingerTech products worldwide, enabling both individuals and companies to bring their ideas to life. With a Bachelors of Science in Electrical Engineering and a background in mechanical design, Kurtis has brought to market dozens of new products and has experience coordinating large projects. To share his love of inventing, Kurtis co-founded and is President of Saskatoon TechWorks Inc., a non-profit hacker-space that brings talented "makers" together and offers them a project space and specialized tools like CNC routers, laser-cutters and 3D printers. TechWorks is community-based and holds public workshops on a variety of topics including metal/woodworking, photography, sculpting, CAD/CAM design, electronics, and programming. He believes everyone has an inner inventor and just needs access to the right knowledge and tools to bring them out.

Kurtis will add value to the project with his many connections in the manufacturing industry and his familiarity with online retail stores, managing shipments, and providing great customer service.

If you’d like to order a printer as well as one of our add ons, please pledge for the printer reward that you prefer (Kit, Assembled, or Pro) and then up your pledge by the cost of the add on you wish to receive. You may order multiple add ons, however please note that it is against KS guidelines to sell quantities higher than 10 of any single item. We do not offer combined shipping, so for example if you want to add two litres of resin you must also add $20 for shipping.

NEW RESIN FORMULAS AVAILABLE!

PeachyJuice Flex (500mL) - $45 CAD (add $5 to ship outside Canada)

Flex is one of our latest resins. Just as it's name suggests it is flexible and springy! Available in red, yellow, blue, green, purple, orange, black, and clear.

PeachyJuice Wiggle (500mL) - $45 CAD (add $5 to ship outside Canada)

Wiggle is another one of our latest resins. It's similar to flex, however much more rubbery. This resin is very flexible! Available in red, yellow, blue, green, purple, orange, black, and clear.

Don't be fooled! Due to the Peachy's unique design you need very little resin to start printing! 100ml is enough to print many small objects! Available in red, yellow, blue, green, purple, orange, black, and clear.

PeachyJuice Stiff (1L) - $60 CAD (Add $10 CAD to ship outside Canada)

Not only is it one of the cheapest resins available, it's also of the highest quality, and there is a story behind why! Visit the Resin page on our website to find out more. Available in red, yellow, blue, green, purple, orange, black, and clear.

Add to your $100 printer kit both liquid reservoir and telescoping legs. The reservoirs may be different than the ones shown in the main video (we are still in the prototype stage). This add on when combined with the $100 kit will provide you with all the components needed to fully construct a great looking printer. Remember you don't need to buy this to have a working printer, you can always find common household containers (see FAQ) to use with the kit which we encourage!

The scanner attachment for the Peachy Printer will include a quick release mount to the printer, HD camera and rotating platform that will be used for scanning smaller objects. Please note that you are able to perform the scanning function with your own camera and rotating platform.

In Closing...

Just as the personal computer and internet have given us the power of borderless social connection and information sharing, we hope that the Peachy Printer (scanner) will put in your hands the power of manufacturing. The power of making. The power of creating...

If you are anything like us, we're sure you'll want to know exactly how this thing works! You also may want to know a bit more about the man behind the Peachy, and his vision for the project. If you'd like to find out more, please visit our website:

Risks and challenges

1. The Peachy Printer isn't at the final product stage. As described above the Peachy still needs work to reach it's full potential. Some issues and challenges may arise during this process. However, we are extremely confident in our ability to rise above them and deliver a great final product. We've already overcame countless roadblocks to get to this point, and we will continue to use the same out-of-the-box solution based thinking process to take it all the way.

2. The Peachy Printer currently has no set limit on build volume, however we haven't given this adequate testing. Like the beam of a flashlight, the print volume gets larger over distance. We plan to push the boundaries of the Peachy to see just how big we can print... One of our goals is to print a full size (16') canoe!

3. Creating the revenue required to develop and progress Freedom Respecting software can be a challenge. We won't be charging money directly for software that you can clearly copy, modify and redistribute yourself. So how will we raise funds to continue developing our software? We plan to implement a donation system that runs inside the software. You will have the option to donate small amounts towards the development of specific features by clicking "donate" buttons right in the program. This idea was recommended by Richard Stallman of the Free Software Foundation. All the money raised through this system will go directly to software development.

FAQ

The kit comes with all the unique parts (the printer housing, internal components, and drip system) required to assemble the Peachy Printer. All that you will need to purchase on your end is two liquid reservoirs for the resin and saltwater, a print base (anything with a flat top that can sit inside the bottom reservoir and be removed), and a way to mount the reservoirs so one is above the other (we recommend a pipe or shelf). With the current design, the only required tools to assemble the printer are a utility knife and a small screw driver. We intend to keep this as simple as possible; no special tools will be required.

For reservoirs you can use almost anything that can hold liquid, disposable cups, pop bottle bottoms, aquariums, or if you want to print something larger a rain barrel could be used. Basically the options are endless and depend on how large of an object you are planning on printing. Keep in mind that build volumes of such a size have not yet been tested.

There was meant to be no difference between the two kits other than price. We apologize for the confusion using the words "everything you need" in the early bird description. Due to your feedback since our 2nd update we've decided to include the telescoping rods and liquid containers in the $90 early bird kit. The wording was our mistake and it's our responsibility to ensure that our backers are completely satisfied.

At this point we are confident we will be able to overcome any of these concerns. If needed we will add an external current limiting resistor so the laser will pass any laws in your country. We are not even sure this is going to be an issue as the laser is being used within the Peachy Printer and not as a laser pointer.

Sorry that this has caused some confusion! The reason we launched this on both sites at the same time is because the two sites have different communities (Indiegogo is worldwide), and we want to get the Peachy Printer in as many homes as possible. The Indiegogo campaign is not a clone or a scam. They were both launched on the same day. The life of the project is not dependent upon both campaigns being successful as, at the time of writing this, we have over six times our fundraising goal on Kickstarter and can easily pull both campaigns off with those funds.

We are pleased to say that we have resolved the add ons issue. KS has made an exception and given us full permission to go back to the add on system for resin and other items. Thanks Kickstarter!

So to clarify:

If you’d like to order resin and a printer, please pledge for the printer reward that you prefer (Kit, Assembled, or Pro) and then add on the cost of the resin plus shipping that you would like to include in your reward. All resin options and prices will be posted in the project description. This will also go for other any other add ons that we offer as well. Please note that it is against KS policy to purchase quantities higher than 10 of any single item. Please keep your add on orders underneath this quantity of any single item!

Once the campaign is complete, we will conduct a survey so we know exactly what add ons your extra pledge money was for! We would like to thank you for all for your patience and understanding while we worked this out :)

There can be a fair amount of leftover resin that doesn't get used during a print. To use the leftover resin you simply syphon the saltwater solution back into the top container so you can start your next print. If you need to switch resins you can syphon all the saltwater back up to the top container and then drain the leftover resin back into it's container.

This build volume of the Peachy Printer is extremely flexible and would depend on the reservoir being used. As mentioned above, almost anything can be used as a reservoir. We think that the limiting factor, when it comes to how large of an object can be printed, will be time; we should be able to scale up a build to any size. It's just a matter of how long you are willing to wait for the object to print. That being said, we haven’t done adequate build volume testing as of yet.

MakerJuice is one of the thinnest resins yet! Although it’s not consistent yet, the Peachy has performed prints where there is absolutely no issue of surface tension and the artifacts that come with it. Josh is working on an even thinner resin specifically formulated for the Peachy and this will reduce surface tension even further.

MakerJuice was developed for printers that have adhesion problems due to UV light shining through a window (the resin cures to the window). The Peachy doesn't have this issue, so we have one less constraint in the recipe of our Peachy resin. This is very liberating, allowing us to work with Josh to create a uniquely high quality resin just for the Peachy Printer. Having said that, MakerJuice is what we've been using this whole time and it works great too! We totally support your purchase of it, and it does work with the peachy!

The Peachy Printer is powered by the USB port and headphone jacks alone. There is no external adapter; no wall power! The Peachy is built to be hacked, so you could easily modify it to be powered with a battery or a solar panel.

We have done some complex prints in the past, but we did them with a really early version of the software, and they didn't turn out too well. They don’t represent what the Peachy will be able to do, but you can check some of them out in the gallery section of our website. We like pushing the limits; if we decide to do more prints during the campaign we will attempt to print both a full size canoe and a working peachy printer (think RepRap!) These prints would have an extremely positive effect on the campaign! Even if we fail, at least we will have taken out some of the guess work for our backers! For now we are completely swamped with the media and backer questions. If you're not convinced by what you have seen so far then feel free to wait it out; we will prove the full capabilities of the Peachy as soon as we can!

Great news! Floating objects only need very, very small support tabs/legs. This is because the print and the salt water have almost identical densities. Also, unlike an extrusion based printer there is no print head to put physical pressure on the print.

No. It’s basically quality camera and a turntable (driven by a stepper motor) that combine with the printer to make it a scanner. If you prefer, you can use your own camera and turntable along with the Peachy kit to have scanner functionality.

We have two options here: currently we can move the laser over the gap at a speed too fast for the resin to cure. Our other option is to develop a simple circuit that detects a subtle high frequency tone signalling the laser to shut off.

It’s not an issue at all. The speed we move the mirrors at is extremely low for sound cards. Far below the human range of hearing making the printer completely silent. Prints remain looking great even if you turn the sample rate way down.

There is no difference in what’s included with the kit. The only difference is a more detailed description. Many people were confused by the lack of specificity in the earlier descriptions. We have apologized for the lack of clarity and promised to make the description crystal clear. That is why they are different.

Kickstarter is not a store.

Pledge CA$ 60 or more
About $59

One litre of resin. Yes, that's right, a whole litre!
This is the same awesome and extremely fast resin used in our video! Available in red, yellow, blue, green, purple, orange, black, and clear. Not only is it one of the cheapest resins available, it's also of the highest quality, and there is a story behind why! Visit the Resin page on our website to find out more.

Kickstarter is not a store.

Pledge CA$ 90 or more
About $88

Early Bird Pricing on the Peachy Printer KIT! This includes everything you need to build your own printer! The estimated build time is only 1 hour (parental supervision will be required for children). 100ml of resin included.

Kickstarter is not a store.

Pledge CA$ 100 or more
About $98

Peachy Printer Kit!
This includes all the unique parts you need to build your own printer! The estimated build time is only 1 hour (parental supervision will be required for children). Includes 100ml of resin

Kickstarter is not a store.

Pledge CA$ 100 or more
About $98

Peachy Printer Kit!
This includes all the unique parts you need to build your own printer! The estimated build time is only 1 hour (parental supervision will be required for children). 100ml of resin included.

Kickstarter is not a store.

Pledge CA$ 100 or more
About $98

Peachy Printer Kit! This includes all the unique parts you need to build your own printer! The estimated build time is only 1 hour (parental supervision will be required for children). 100ml of resin included.

Kickstarter is not a store.

Pledge CA$ 100 or more
About $98

Peachy Printer Kit! This includes all the unique parts you need to build your own printer! The estimated build time is only 1 hour (parental supervision will be required for children). 100ml of resin included.

Kickstarter is not a store.

Pledge CA$ 100 or more
About $98

Peachy Printer Kit! This includes the printer housing, it's components, and the drip system! You must supply your own liquid reservoirs and mounting system (you can use household items, see FAQ). You can also see our add ons section to make it a complete kit. The estimated build time is only 1 hour (parental supervision will be required for children). 100ml of resin included.

Kickstarter is not a store.

Pledge CA$ 350 or more
About $342

Scanner attachment for the Peachy Printer which will include a quick release mount to the printer, HD camera and rotating platform that will be used for scanning smaller objects. Please note that you are able to perform the scanning function with your own camera.

Kickstarter is not a store.

Pledge CA$ 1,000 or more
About $978

Peachy Printer Pro (fully assembled).

The Peachy Pro will be built using the best quality parts available! It will also have increased functionality. Some of it's features will include lapped and polished mirrors, a pump, a micro-controller (no longer reliant on your computers sound card), and a high power laser with continuous focusing. The result will be higher quality prints with a faster and larger print capability! 1 litre of resin included.

Kickstarter is not a store.

Pledge CA$ 6,000 or more
About $5,866

We will attempt to print a full size canoe. Whether we succeed or fail you get our prints for your collection (shipping is not included). You will also receive the printer that did it! On top of that you get a special invitation to meet the team and an invitation to the Peachy conference (no expenses paid, date and location to be announced). Thank-you so much, you are truly helping us make history!